That Best Mate thingy
by MaraudinglySerious
Summary: COMPLETE: After reading the fifth book I was struck with an image of Sirius that I felt should be written down. A romantic comedy.
1. Chapter 1

"Potter, Black, I expect the both of you here promptly after dinner every day for tutoring. You'll go over each and every single charm I've taught you since first year. And don't get shirty with me, Potter, your Charms grades as of late are abysmal, so scrap it together before the end of the first term?" Professor Flitwick bowed them out of his room, himself, hopping off of his books to get to the Great Hall for dinner.  
  
James and Sirius stared at each other for a moment, as if to let it all sink in. "Tutoring?" James muttered, after a long spell of silence. "Bloody hell. You know if Gemma hears this she's going t have a fit" He groaned as they walked to the Great Hall.  
  
"Of laughter, mate?" Sirius grinned. "Come on, it can't be that bad. Though.unfortunately I know Snivellus won't be our tutor, and I've just mastered the Abundant Acne Hex."  
  
"I can do that too, Padfoot." James replied, sitting next to Remus empty spot.  
  
Sirius grinned at him as he sat next to Peter. "Still elementary, are we James? The hex reaches parts of the body that aren't normally seen by the public, perhaps, by no one except Snivellus' mum, when he was a baby."  
  
"Boys, can't help but overhear" a cool female voice spoke from James's side, "a plot?" A chicken drumstick levitated through the air and into the open palm of a dark haired, blue eyed witch.  
  
"Gemma," James grinned, ruffling his untidy hair as he turned to her, "you know us all too well. Why do you even ask?"  
  
Gemma thought about this for a moment. "True. I did just waste my breath didn't I? Nonetheless, it had to be asked." She returned to her food and an intense conversation on Ancient Runes with the ginger-haired Lily Evans. And after a few moments of leaving the boys alone, she looked at them and grinned. "Lovely dinner boys, but Lily and I have got to go. Something about tutoring for Charms."  
  
James glared at Sirius. "You know we're only going to.never hear the END OF IT!"  
  
~*~  
  
"Mr. Potter I've partnered you with Ms. Swenson, Mr. Black you're with Ms. Evans." Professor Flitwick said, from atop his usual stack of books. "I'll be in my office if you need me."  
  
Gemma stared at James a grin tugging at her lips. "You know, if your father hears this."  
  
"Can we just get started on the Charms, Gemma?" James muttered.  
  
As they reviewed the charms, James had to admit that Gemma was doing a good job. And he'd improved in the ten minutes that they'd gone over first year's charms. They were laughing a little more than they should've, especially for Sirius' liking. He was advancing though not as quickly as they were, although Lily was the better Charms witch.  
  
Two hours later and the four were headed to their common room. James and Gemma running like mad hippogriffs. "Are they always like that?" Asked Lily, surprising Sirius.  
  
"What? You mean mad? Or touchy-feely?" Sirius asked. "Oh, both. Well, you know, they've been best mates longer than I've been mates with James. Comes with the territory I suppose. They went out third year, James broke it off though, got too weird for him. And Gems has moved on, to several people since then."  
  
"Amos Diggory. Henry Wood." Lily added. "She fancies someone now, but she refuses to tell me." She said as she turned to Sirius. Her eyebrows perked up considerably and as they entered the Gryffindor common room, she immediately plucked Gemma off James and ran up to their dorm.  
  
"What was that all about?" James asked, as Sirius sat opposite from him, in front of the fire.  
  
"Oh you know, the usual, girl talk." Sirius answered. "Lily's told me that Gemma fancies someone new."  
  
"She would've told me." James answered with an air of superiority. "In any case, what time is it?"  
  
"Close to midnight." Sirius grinned. "And it's a full moon."  
  
With an amazing speed the two were gone and stalked off towards the Whomping Willow for another one of their adventures. 


	2. Chapter 2

Sirius came into the Common Room wheezing with laughter, James ahead of him, though he wore an expression of glee, failed at masking his fatigue and headed to the dormitories. Sirius strode to the fire stretching a bit, when he heard a cough behind him. Jumping, he took his wand out.  
  
"Oh, Lily, it's only you." He said to the red haired girl reading by the firelight.  
  
"What, am I not a person?" Gemma asked as she was in the chair opposite. Sirius turned to her nodding to acknowledge her. She yawned and held her hand out and a blanket materialized out of nowhere. "You care for a blanket Lily? Sirius?"  
  
"Can you explain to me wandless magic one more time?" Lily asked, as her blanket materialized as well.  
  
"It's an.evolution of sorts, really. The gran and gramps on both sides were American witches and wizards. Their ancestors couldn't really keep around wands and the like so somehow powers got transferred to the actual witch or wizard. Example in me, telekinesis, molecular manipulation, orbing in and out of places, 'cept Hogwarts of course, kinda like Apparating.and levitation. But I haven't exactly mastered that last bit, though." Gemma said sleepily. She twirled her quill in the air, before letting it land perfectly within Sirius' messy hair.  
  
"Amazing." Lily grinned. "Could we make him our inkpot too?"  
  
At this Sirius stood up. "Alright, you're both very tired. And it's a Hogsmeade date tomorrow. You'll both be slumped over your butterbeers-"  
  
"Firewhisky" Gemma interrupted cheekily.  
  
Sirius grinned at her "- and firewhiskies, like nobody's business. And since I can't exactly go up to your dorms, I'll sort of just." And he began to pick them both up off their chairs, an amusing sight really. He placed Lily down at the stair first and she nodded to him and ran up to her dorm. He went back to the chair for Gemma to find that she wasn't there. He looked up and saw her at the foot of the staircase. Picking up her blanket he walked over to her. "You forgot this." He wrapped it around her until it hung loosely from her shoulders.  
  
"Sirius Black, serial gentleman." Gemma grinned. She kissed his forehead and tiptoed up the stairs.  
  
A strange sensation filled Sirius after that and he couldn't help but grin as he opened the door to their dorm. "What happened? Did Lily say anything about me?" James asked, springing up from his bed.  
  
"Lily? Oh she was studying." Sirius replied. "Now Gemma."  
  
"Did she tell you who she fancied?" James asked. "I'd been thinking, I bet you it's Gregory Davies." Sirius just barked with laughter. "It is! I knew it!"  
  
"No mate, she didn't say anything." He said, chortling to himself as he turned into his bed. "'Sirius Black, serial gentleman.'"  
  
Sirius fretted over the state of his robes, much to James' amusement. He was secretly glad that he didn't have James' untidy hair as they headed to breakfast, Peter was sleeping in, their previous nights adventure having worn him out well. Gemma was sitting across from Lily and Sirius was going to make this as his attempt at furthering whatever happened the night before.  
  
James, however, being the nancy that he was at times, sat right next to her, and heaving a sigh Sirius sat next to Lily instead hearing the tail- end of James' question. "- fancy someone?" Gemma just rolled her eyes. "Gems, come on, I promise I won't tell the parents.this time."  
  
And this is, essentially, how the two spent their day. Sirius went into Dervishes and Banges alone, stocking up for a month full of Dungbombs, and Snivellus pranks, himself. He left the store, rather excited to show James at Three Broomsticks. He peered into the window. "Teachers, Snivellus.yech." As he looked into the windows of each shop, he shrugged and decided to head back to the school, passing a group of third years who goggled at him, giggling as he passed.  
  
"Oy, Sirius!" Gemma called from up the road. "Care for a few drinks with us at Three Broomsticks?"  
  
Sirius, seeing James behind her, shook his head. "Nah, I'm going to go and set up some traps for Sniv-"  
  
Gemma interrupted him. The group of third years watched the scene, coolly glaring at Gemma. "James is buying."  
  
"Now, wait just one minute." James started, but Gemma was already leading Sirius to Three Broomsticks. He walked up to the counter and waited for the order of three butterbeers.  
  
Sirius, normally the suave of the Marauders, found himself unbelievably tongue-tied. He wondered maybe if Gemma was doing that telekinetically. Eventually, with much non-dramatic internal struggle, he came to that conclusion. "Er, Gemma, have you heard about the New Ye-"  
  
"You owe me." James grinned putting the three bottles down onto their table. Soon their talks turned to Quidditch, something Sirius and James enjoyed to the point of Gemma's deathly boredom. She cleared her throat and orbed out and made her way to Hogwarts.  
  
"What was that about?" Sirius asked at her sudden departure.  
  
"Don't mind that, she does that all the time. Well she did that a lot more when I used to chase her around with a broomstick when we were smaller." James said, dismissively. "So, have you narrowed down the search for a date to the New Year's Ball? I have."  
  
"I know you have James. You've had it narrowed down since we were on the train." Sirius groaned exasperatedly. "And I'll have you know that I haven't narrowed it down."  
  
"Judging by the groups of third years constantly kissing the ground you walk on, you won't have trouble finding a date." James snickered, looking at the same group of third years sitting at the table next to them. 


	3. Chapter 3

"There you are, Lily dear." Gemma grinned as she entered the common room. "Want to go to the library? James has been harassing me about who I fancy all day, and I need to shake him off."  
  
"Boys can be so..thick sometimes!" Lily giggled, her green eyes flashing. "What do we want to pretend to study?"  
  
"Pretend? I need all the help I can in History of Magic." Gemma groaned, as she and Lily went up to get their books.  
  
"We can just hide out here. The guys can't come up here anyway." Lily said smartly. "He hasn't figured it out yet, has he?"  
  
"By he, you mean-"  
  
"You know who I mean." Lily interrupted. Gemma shook her head.  
  
"It's not my fault though! James is always tagging along." Gemma groaned. "He fancies you, you know. I think he'll be asking you to the New Year's Ball."  
  
"Gobstones, Gemma, he's handsome and all, but he's got the head the size of a toilet." Lily said matter-of-factly.  
  
"Just a toilet?" Gemma asked.  
  
The two made their way down to the Great Hall for dinner, and sat at the opposite end, to avoid any encounter with the Marauders. "Just tell him, Gemma. And besides. There's no way to avoid him next week, we've got to tutor them." The two wandered down the hallway after dinner, Lily telling Gemma all about Muggles.  
  
"Well that's just odd, why would anyone want...AGHHH!" Something big and charging pushed her into the nearest cabinet, just narrowly missing Lily, who wore a look of shock which turned into satisfaction. Peeves came careening down the stairs while Peter and James emerged from down the hall.  
  
"Sorry Gemma." Sirius said quickly, as she gained her bearing inside the cabinet. "Dungbomb wars, Peter's got terrible aim." He pushed on the cabinet door. Gemma looked at him apprehensively. "I've got this don't worry. Alohamora!"  
  
Silence.  
  
"Yeah, okay. Let me try." She tried to blow the doors off with her powers. She tried orbing out. In the end she just felt very woozy and sat down with her back to Sirius. One last attempt on the door later, Sirius followed suit. He took this as the opportunity to massage Gemma, something he normally would have done anyway, had it been another girl. "So, since we're stuck here, have you asked anyone to the Ball yet? With hands like that, I'm surprised you're not dating anyone."  
  
Sirius gave out a bark-like cough. "Erm, well I've been straying away from the bimbo type. They're not much of a challenge."  
  
"That's not answering my question." Gemma replied with a hint of insistence. Sirius swept aside some of her hair to massage her neck.  
  
"Is my answer that important to you?" Sirius asked, looking forward to playing a mind game.  
  
"If you don't want to answer, then it's not a big deal to you, then is it?" Gemma asked. "And dozens of girls here at Hogwarts will be heartbroken."  
  
"Are you twisting my words?"  
  
"Only part of the game." Gemma turned to him a sly look on her face that Sirius had never seen before, except for when he'd been secretly watching her with Amos Diggory. But that was a completely different matter.  
  
"Are we playing a game?" And past the awkward silence, they drew in for that cliché kiss, when the doors exploded open.  
  
Gemma stood up immediately, coughing in the dust. "Who opened it up?"  
  
"I did." Lily grinned. "Took some thinking but I got it." Gemma just glared and marched up to Gryffindor Tower.  
  
The number of apologies from Lily that evening were endless that night. To the point, actually, in which Gemma threatened to perform the Total Body Bind on Lily. "Well If I'd known!" Lily protested.  
  
"Don't be silly, you couldn't have known." Gemma said dismissively. "I'm sure he's forgotten by now. You know how guys are, they remember anything that's gotten them.gratification."  
  
Lily thought about this for a moment. "Well, after you and Sirius got out, and went your separate ways.James asked me to the Ball."  
  
Gemma's eyes lit up. "Lily.that's GREAT! You'll be the talk of the school! 'Lily Evans and Quidditch great James Potter' I'm loving it already. Mind you," Gemma said quickly, "they'll start a hate group. Set one up for me third year. James wasn't too keen, and he put an end to that."  
  
"Hate group?" Lily asked apprehensively.  
  
"They couldn't hate you Lily. You're too nice, and once you're done up for the Ball, you'll be the prettiest, well, as pretty, as me anyway, witch in the Hall." Gemma grinned. "You're the first redhead he's ever dated."  
  
"We're not dating!" Lily blushed a furious red. "We're only dates to the ball." Gemma looked pleased with herself.  
  
The boys dormitories were different. Remus was back, but sleeping to gain strength. Peter was reviewing his Potions. James. James kept going on and on about Lily and how he asked her to the Ball, down to each and every detail to the expression of her face.  
  
"Prongs, quit." Sirius barked. "Realize that reveling in victory while your best mate has yet to achieve it is tortuous."  
  
"Sorry Padfoot, got overexcited I suppose."  
  
"Just a little." Sirius answered, rolling his eyes.  
  
Lily and Gemma were already downstairs eating breakfast when the Marauders came down. Sirius sat down across from Gemma. "Morning Gems."  
  
"Ready for more Charms, Sirius?" She responded, immediately regretting it, on the basis that she sounded like a complete git.  
  
"Damn, er.bugger." Sirius answered. 'Bollocks, I hope she didn't take it the wrong way.' And the awkward silence settled in cozily between them for the next half hour though Sirius was positive he felt her foot tapping his.  
  
Four classes and twl meals later found them in the Charms room. "Mr. Potter has informed me that you teach too fast, Ms. Swenson. So perhaps you and Ms. Evans should switch, she'd complained Sirius was too restless. I hope that you fix that up immediately." Professor Flitwick told them. "I'll be in my office if you need me."  
  
James and Lily, throughout breaks in the tutoring watched Sirius' awkwardness and Gemma's impatience with a strange amusement. Sirius sent glass shards flying out of his wand which Gemma quickly stopped with a wave of her hand. "Funny because just yesterday you tried to kiss me, now you're trying to kill me?" Gemma looked ready to snap his wand at his second attempt at the Fireworks Charm.  
  
"Gemma, I was quite clear that you tried to kiss me." Sirius replied, his frustration at Charms funneling its way out of his system and into the argument.  
  
"So you didn't want me to kis you?" Gemma asked with such outrage that the nearby bookends caught fire.  
  
"You said that, not me." Sirius chuffed, slamming his Charms note shut.  
  
Sensing this could get ugly, James stepped in. "Quit guys, this isn't supposed to be a shouting match-"  
  
"SHUT UP!" They both yelled, and soon the two of them rounded on James.  
  
"Always being the hero-"  
  
"Thinking you're so much better-"  
  
"Would you stop arguing and KISS EACH OTHER ALREADY?" Lily yelled. "Bloody sick and tired of this nonsense. Sirius, she doesn't bite, and Gemma, I don't understand how you can keep your temper with James, but not with Sirius." Lily shook her head at both of them and stomped off. James trailing quickly.  
  
Gemma stood in the hall watching to be sure that James was out of sight and earshot. She leapt into Sirius' arms, who caught her unexpectedly as she kissed him hard on the lips. She jumped off and with a wave of her hand the flaming bookend was no more. "I thought they'd never leave."  
  
"Wait.was that, your exploding things." Sirius said, seeing the big picture, looking mildly stunned..  
  
"A sick, cheap way to get us privacy?" Gemma asked. Sirius' eyes lit up like the Great Hall Christmas trees. She just grinned and put a finger to her lips.  
  
"That was one sly trick Gemma. The kind that piques a gentleman's interest." Sirius grinned, slipping an arm around her.  
  
"Sirius, you're talking to me." Gemma replied. "You think I went through James' hexing jokes without learning anything? Surely, you should know me better."  
  
"Gemma, Gemma darling." Sirius smiled. "I never doubted your capabilities.hang on, why am I trying to impress you more, when you've already kissed me?"  
  
"Duped twice within three minutes, Sirius. I daresay, you're getting rusty." Gemma smirked as they walked to Gryffindor Tower.  
  
"Gemma, remind me that if in ten years I'm not married to you, you're to hit me over the head repeatedly with a cauldron." Sirius said amusedly. "Repeatedly."  
  
"I'll take you up on that then." Gemma grinned, kissing just as they got in front of the Fat Lady's portrait.  
  
"Why is it that young people think they can go off snogging in hallways if they're not at home?" The portrait spoke exasperatedly.  
  
Sirius barked the password so that she swung off, unable to see them.  
  
Fin. 


End file.
